8 Mosquito devices

What the Committee said:

"The Committee recommends that the State party reconsider the
ASBO as well as other measures such as the
mosquito device insofar as they may violate the rights of children
to freedom of movement and peaceful assembly, the enjoyment of
which is essential for the children's development and may only
subject to very limited restrictions as enshrined in article 15 of
the Convention."

Progress to date

The Scottish Government has made clear that it does not
support the use of mosquito devices.

In early 2011 we approached a group of local authority
antisocial behaviour practitioners to try and gauge the level of
use of the device across Scotland. We asked if they were aware of
the mosquito device; were aware of it being used in their local
authority area; whether their authority had expressed a public
view on it; and whether anyone had raised concerns about use of
the device. Of 32 local authorities, 20 responded. All were aware
of the mosquito device. Only six told us they were aware of the
device being used in their area, and three of the six responses
indicated it was historical. Only one of the respondents
indicated that anyone had raised concerns with them.

Next steps

The Public Petitions Committee is currently considering
Petition 1367 which calls on the Scottish Parliament to urge the
Scottish Government to ban the use of the mosquito and other
similar devices. We will continue to engage in the Committee's
consideration of the petition as appropriate.